Uma Musume no Nama no Nichijou (Horse Girl), First and foremost

That's because this racehorse girl used to always sprint to the finish line at the start of every race, which led to her being overlooked by everyone—a unique racing talent!

Chapter 229 Dangerous Eye White Ardan

At the end of May, Darby, Japan.

Although the classic three-crown match that determines the new king is usually filled with fans and viewers, today's popularity is even more surprising than before.

"Tsk tsk, the tickets sold out two weeks ago? Is this match really that popular?"

"Strictly speaking, the off-site tickets that were added two weeks ago should have been sold out immediately. Today, we must also use the audience seating that was just tested and completed at the beginning of this year, and ensure the stability of off-site TV stations and online channels."

Perhaps because the policy of the Central Horse Girls Association is to merge the Central Horse Girls and the Regional Horse Girls, the association naturally expects that the existing Japanese audience will be further expanded and concentrated.

After all, some local spectators, due to their usual work and other reasons, tend to watch the games in their local area unless they have a specific supporter present.

The expansion into new audiences is easier to understand.

With the cake ingredients concentrated in larger quantities, the expenses for promotion can also increase significantly. By using various channels, the number of viewers for "Uma Musume" (Horse Girl Racer) can be effectively increased.

In other words, now that the merger has occurred, an increase in the maximum number of employees is a predicted and inevitable phenomenon, and making relevant expansion preparations in advance is a necessary operation.

"Well... that's good too. They can be considered the first group to benefit from the dividends."

After a moment's thought, Golden Victory gave this assessment.

Even during their very early rookie period after debuting, they basically dominated their opponents. Even after everyone learned their own aura and techniques, they could still easily win based on their experience.

However, occasionally some problems that no one had been able to find before would occur. For example, Golden City was able to use effective aura techniques to influence Tamamo's actions beyond the distance that Tamamo could judge.

No matter how powerful Golden Victory and her trainer are, or how talented she is, her individual strength and wisdom are still ultimately inferior to those of a group of people.

She can be a pioneer, a trailblazer, but she cannot forever master all the techniques and strategies that belong to momentum...

"Besides the Satsuki Sho group of racehorse girls, there is another formidable opponent in this competition that we must be wary of: the Mejiro family's newest racehorse girl."

"I knew it! Sure enough, the Mejiro family's racehorse girl will be making an appearance this year."

While racehorses named after famous horse breeders are not extremely rare, it's not every year that we see new blood from their respective prestigious horse breeders in top rookie races.

No matter how powerful a family is, it will have its own brief period of prosperity and decline. The goal of the prestigious Ma Niang family is to ensure that the family survives as long as possible and does not disappear from the history of Ma Niang.

Upon hearing Huang Jinsheng's reaction, Representative Qianming was taken aback for a moment before nodding.

She knew that this guy was probably too busy to pay attention to the other contestants' information, or he simply hadn't. The latter was more likely.

"Yes, Mejiro Ardan, the newest racehorse girl in the Mejiro family, can be considered the representative of the newcomers in the Mejiro family this year."

"Mejiro Ardan... Oh, I know her, she's Koyama's sister. Koyama mentioned her when we were chatting and we didn't have anything to talk about. So she debuted this year too. Wow, she's not even going for the Satsuki Prize anymore. I guess she's really worthy of the Mejiro family."

When she responded with a pout, there was a hint of sarcasm in her tone.

After all, the other party debuted at the end of March, which means that the other party had almost no chance to participate in the Satsuki Sho.

This kind of operation, which directly and cruelly crushes a newcomer's dream challenge opportunity, can only be described as worthy of the Mejiro family.

However... this was a judgment made internally by the Mejiro family, and Golden Victory didn't bother to pay attention to it.

In any case, if nothing unexpected happens on their side, Golden Victory encourages them to participate in the competition whenever possible.

Noticing the dissatisfaction in the other party's voice, Representative Qianming immediately began to explain:

"Not all female racehorses aim for the classic Triple Crown. It requires the right timing, location, and people; if any one of these is missing, achieving this honor is almost hopeless."

"Moreover, losing top-level matches can easily highlight the gap in skill ceiling between athletes, affecting the career performance of these promising newcomers. We also have to consider the injuries accumulated from frequent competitions."

"After careful consideration, the members of the prestigious Ma Niang team have chosen to focus on one or two matches that they excel at."

Goodness, coming from a triple crown racehorse like you, that statement actually makes a lot of sense.

Oh, I'm also a triple crown horse girl, or even a double triple crown. Never mind then, it's true that human will can overcome fate, which is more practical than that kind of mystical luck.

I'd probably believe half of what Representative Qianming said about the Golden Victory choice.

Skill is definitely a hard requirement, but luck...

He was unlucky in a way, but ultimately he overcame his difficulties through his own strength and came to his current status and achievements.

Rather than saying that all three are necessary, it's more accurate to say that because normal people don't have the overwhelming strength to defeat their opponents, they must consider other factors.

Of course, if we're really going to say that, then no matter how you look at it, it's hard for a horse girl competing for the Triple Crown to actually have an overwhelming advantage over her rivals in the same year...

[Darby, Shiba, Japan, 2400 meters]

As this is the top stage for newcomers to Uma Musume, the contestants are mostly similar to Satsuki Sho in terms of popularity, but the top three in popularity have indeed changed to some extent.

"The most popular horse of the third round! Group 2, number 5 racehorse, Sakura Chiyo! I wonder if Sakura Chiyo can show us the style of a prestigious horse girl this time!"

"Second most popular! Racehorse No. 20, Group 7, Oguri Hat! She's only one horse length behind Satsuki Sho, can she turn the tide and claim the title of Racehorse Girl this time!"

"A popular choice! Group 2, No. 6, Tokai Teiko! Winner of the Satsuki Sho, the second leg of the Classic Triple Crown, can the genius racehorse girl, known for her ambition to never win a Triple Crown, defeat all the strong opponents in the end and successfully achieve her second victory!"

The contestants were quite familiar with each other, especially the so-called popular racehorse girls, who were basically strong contenders who had already distinguished themselves in previous competitions around the same time.

However, among them is a relatively unfamiliar popular horse racing girl, Meguro Ardan.

Sixth in popularity, not high but not low either, even higher than Super Bay, who is ranked eighth but is less known to the audience, yet they know that Super Bay is from the Golden Victory team.

Because she had only participated in three matches before this, and her popularity was due not only to the prestigious Mejiro family and being the younger sister of Mejiro Yamamine, the three-crown Mejiro family member, but also to her performance in the previous match.

In the previous G2 match, they came in second place with a bang, which gave the audience some hope that Meguro Ardan could have a good performance in Japan.

"Eh...it's Mejiro family's Uma Musume (horse girl)..."

During the warm-up phase of the competition, most of the players remained relatively silent.

Perhaps it's out of respect for the opponent, or perhaps it's because being a newcomer like Ma Niang makes one particularly cautious in this kind of environment.

After all, this warm-up phase is a warm-up that takes place on the field in advance. Even though I received the notification two weeks before the competition, I still can't immediately adjust my state to the point of ignoring the audience.

Even those who have participated in G1 races or even the Satsuki Sho, one of the classic Triple Crowns, still feel pressure and nervous when facing a large audience.

However... there are some special cases here. Racehorse girls are actually quite comfortable and relaxed in this environment.

For example, the Tokai emperor who won the Satsuki Prize.

This horse girl seemed to really enjoy being surrounded and noticed by adults, and she was also observing her fellow horse girls around her with exceptional energy.

"Hmm? Hello, Donghai Emperor, is there anything I can help you with?"

Thirty meters away, where the crowd had dispersed, as if noticing the gazes of others, Megumi Ardan turned around and gave the East Sea Emperor a friendly smile and a greeting.

Emperor of the East Sea: "...Hello, Meguro Ardan-kun. Oh, I was just curious because I hadn't seen this before~"

She paused slightly at first, but then, as usual, she responded to the Mejiro family's racehorse girl with her talkative and positive attitude.

The reason for his momentary daze was simple: the opponent was a formidable foe.

Even through interaction, one cannot discern any extraneous aura emanating from the other party, which is why Di Bao feels inexplicably wary when facing this opponent.

...Too conservative.

The other party was very good at disguising themselves, as if they could sense their surroundings and adjust their own state accordingly.

If it weren't for the fact that the other party lacked experience in terms of aura and techniques, which made the Emperor of the East Sea realize that something was wrong, she might have been deceived as well.

A horse girl who can achieve this level of skill... even Tamamo Cross, a member of our own horse girl team, might not be able to do it.

Is it as strong as the March Senpai...?

Perhaps it's because there are fewer opportunities to compete against Fujimasa, and instead, I often ask him for advice on momentum and techniques.

The reason why Oguri Hattori isn't addressed as such is quite simple: Oguri Hattori is a formidable rival in the competition, and Teibo doesn't want to be at a disadvantage from the start in a battle of wills, so she subconsciously refuses to use the title of "senpai" (senior).

Of course, there are other reasons as well. For example, when Fujimasa meets him, especially when he gives him guidance on his aura and techniques, his eyes are usually very fierce. Even though he himself said that he had tried to soften his gaze as much as possible, Teibo naturally gave in to this atmosphere.

"Yes, I'm also very interested in the winning Uma Musume of the Satsuki Prize. Well then, I look forward to your guidance in this competition."

A calm and elegant smile graced her face, a demeanor typical of Meguro family's horse girls.

Faced with the other party's friendly attitude, Di Bao grinned and responded with an innocent yet slightly defiant expression.

On the warm-up field, the two engaged in an unspoken battle, unfolding silently amidst the tension among the many competitors...

This match between Japan and Darby was different from previous ones, or rather, it was the first G1 match in recent times to change the match format.

This competition seems to have slightly changed the rules of operation. There is a warm-up session on the field first, followed by the contestants' presentations, and then a final warm-up session before entering the gate.

As for why this change was made...

"You're saying this is fairer? But I feel like it's actually favoring the most popular characters?"

"Well... perhaps we should say that popularity can also be incorporated into pre-match tactical considerations. Gaining votes in advance to achieve a better ranking and then snowballing to win a magnificent victory is what is meant by being the popular choice, isn't it?"

Hearing the other party's somewhat doubtful tone, Pure White Horse Girl gave an explanation with a slight pout.

Yes, this was a suggestion made by Kōgane Kōri, who serves as the honorary director of the Uma Musume Association, the head of the association's charisma and skills management department, and the head of the prestigious Uma Musume Golden Family.

When she was inexplicably assigned this position, she initially found it troublesome and wanted to simply pass the job on to someone else...

But the thought that her decisions could be made so easily and directly without needing anyone else to be responsible, and that the relevant personnel of the Horse Girls Association would handle the work separately, meant that Golden Victory only needed to be the decision-maker she wanted to do occasionally.

Looking back now...it was so much fun!

Instead of displaying a provocative demeanor, Golden Victory simply spoke her true feelings with a touch of emotion.

"Heaven knows that those old-fashioned, noble Ma family heads would actually grant us such exaggerated power. All I can say is that we are praising a goddess."

"After all, the momentum technique has now been further developed, and a technique has been found that can accelerate speed through stimulation from others. Since the difficulty of realizing this technique is not as desperate as your miracle, the Horse Girl Association must give you more benefits."

Only by proving one's own value can one stand in a higher position; this has always been the guiding principle of the Japan Horse Girls Association.

"Hey, in the end, they're just worried that one day we might get unhappy and jump ship to another country to become a motivational skills consultant. I can only say that these guys are really realistic."

"Yes, it's too realistic, but who can blame us when the Horse Girls Association is ostensibly carrying the dreams of countless Japanese horse racers?"

"If a dream is not supported by reality, it is just a dream that will never be realized."

Having experienced too many cruel realities among noble horse girls, Representative Chiaki is more realistic than those naive and passionate horse girls who yearn for their dreams.

However... being naive and passionate, pursuing dreams, doesn't seem like such a bad thing, right?

Looking at the pure white horse girl, and then at her dream on the racetrack, a smile unconsciously appeared on Representative Chiaki's face.